To reduce the weight of barge hatch covers it has been proposed that light-weight plastic sheeting be used in tentlike arrays as evidenced by my U.S. Pat. No. 4,130,125 issued Dec. 19, 1978. Other tentlike hatch covers are shown in U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,405,814--H. H. Yanow--Oct. 15, 1968 and 524,137--M. Enright -- Aug. 7, 1894.
Barge hatches are typically over 50 meters (150 ft.) long and about 10 meters (30 ft.) wide. Thus, metal covers are very heavy and expensive. Furthermore, they are time and cost consuming to use and store. Thus, portable, light-weight, low-cost hatch covers are desirable to protect such cargos as salt, grain, etc. which are to be protected from rainwater during transport.
Prior art tentlike hatch covers partly satisfy the needs but introduce several problems. They are difficult to erect because of the tent pole framework structure, and special structure need be supplied for in-transit use. The framework must be stored, and is costly and need be erected and taken down.
Furthermore the tent framework exposes the hatch cover to wind and thus must be securely braced to prevent flapping or collapse. Also, it is preferable to prevent the sail effect that gathers the wind in a superstructure assembly.
One of the most serious problems with tenting is that of anchoring the tent to the deck or coaming about the hatch in a strong leak-proof seal. Strong wind gusts may tear loose tie down straps, etc. in light-weight plastic, and permit rainwater to be blown into torn gaps.
Accordingly, this invention has as its objective the improvement of the art by overcoming the foregoing problems and providing a simplified easy to install light-weight plastic hatch cover compatible with the conditions encountered in barge transport.